Eugene Asante (born January 22, 2001) is an American football linebacker for the Auburn Tigers. He previously played for North Carolina.

Eugene Asante
Auburn Tigers – No. 9
PositionLinebacker
ClassSenior
MajorLiberal Arts
Personal information
Born: (2001-01-22) January 22, 2001 (age 23)
Height6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)
Weight222 lb (101 kg)
Career history
College
High schoolWestfield
(Chantilly, Virginia)

Early life and high school edit

Asante grew up in Alexandria, Virginia.[1] His parents are Ghanaian immigrants and his older brother Larry played five seasons in the NFL.[2] Asante played football at Westfield High School in Chantilly, Virginia where he was named the defensive player of the year for Northern Virginia as a senior.[3] A four star prospect, he committed to play college football at the University of North Carolina (UNC) over in-state Virginia Tech.[4][3]

College career edit

Asante primarily played special teams in his first season at UNC, recording 12 tackles on the season, 8 of which came against Mercer, when he led the team in tackles.[5] In 2020, he made his first career start against Virginia Tech and in the Orange Bowl against Texas A&M had a game-high 10 tackles.[6] Following the 2021 season he announced that he would be transferring to Auburn University. Asante appeared in the first four games on the season in 2022, before being placed on the practice squad by then-head coach Bryan Harsin. Asante would become a leader of the Tigers defense in 2023.[7] In Week 2 against California, Asante recorded 12 tackles and a sack as the Tigers won 14–10.[8][9][10][11] For his performance he was named the SEC co-defensive player of the week.[7]

References edit

  1. ^ "On The Plains with Eugene Asante: 'Establishing a winning culture'". Auburn University Athletics. 2023-09-15. Retrieved 2023-09-21.
  2. ^ Lee, Ainslie (2023-09-20). "How Eugene Asante's father and his Ghana roots helped shape his 'Let's work!' mentality". AL.com. Retrieved 2023-09-21.
  3. ^ a b Callahan, Don. "UNC Steals Four-Star LB Eugene Asante". 247Sports. Retrieved 2023-09-21.
  4. ^ "Eugene Asante, Auburn Tigers, Linebacker". 247Sports. Retrieved 2023-09-21.
  5. ^ "TarHeelIllustrated - Asante Pushing Toward A Bigger Role On UNC's Defense". northcarolina.rivals.com. 2020-09-03. Retrieved 2023-09-21.
  6. ^ "Eugene Asante Prepping for Increased Role". 247Sports. Retrieved 2023-09-21.
  7. ^ a b "Auburn football: Eugene Asante emerging as leader of Tigers' defense". Saturday Down South. 2023-09-12. Retrieved 2023-09-21.
  8. ^ Cole, Adam (2023-09-11). "'In the midst of chaos, there's opportunity': Eugene Asante relishing leadership opportunity in Auburn's defense". Opelika-Auburn News. Retrieved 2023-09-21.
  9. ^ Cole, Adam (2023-09-11). "Auburn linebacker Eugene Asante named SEC co-Defensive Player of the Week". Dothan Eagle. Retrieved 2023-09-21.
  10. ^ Cohen, Matt (2023-09-10). "How Eugene Asante and the defense bailed Auburn out against Cal". al. Retrieved 2023-09-21.
  11. ^ "Jim Nagy predicts Jaylin Simpson to 'blow up' at NFL combine". Yahoo Sports. 2023-09-19. Retrieved 2023-09-21.

External links edit